Feast of Our Lady of Charity

The image of Our Lady of Charity reflects the story of the “Three Juans” – two Native American brothers, Rodrigo and Juan de Hoyos and a very young African slave. Around 1612, as a storm arose in the Bay of Nipe, the three young men began to petition Mary for her protection. As they prayed the skies suddenly cleared. In the water, floating near their small boat they discovered a statue of the Virgin Mary, holding the Infant Jesus in her arms, and a gold cross in one hand. The statue was fastened to a board on which was the inscription, Yo Soy la Virgen de la Caridad or “I am the Virgin of Charity.”